Hello? Anyone??

I am guessing no one is even reading this anymore but what the heck. I am alive. I have crawled out of my classroom long enough to say hello. It has been a crazy month or two or however long it has been. Worst. Blogger. EVER. My husband is not much better though, but perhaps he will be inspired.

Let's see what has been going on....well I got a job. I am a first grade teacher. Crazy, frustrating, wonderful, exhausting, overwhelming and just BA-NANAS in more ways than I ever could have imagined. My long distance marriage is working out pretty good and is helped by the fact that I spend 12 hours a day at school and then come home in time to pack my lunch and go to bed. The positive effects of this being I have lost 7 pounds. Yup, that's right people --3 months of two hour daily sessions at the gym and not a ounce lost, one month as a first grader teacher and the pounds have disappeared. I think I may have found the best weight loss program in America. And for all of those people who tell you teaching is the best career for moms. LIARS. All. Of. Them. I am not even a mom yet, but I know that my hypothetical child of the future will not appreciate the schedule I am currently keeping. Where was I? Oh yes, long distance marriage. So we are keeping the airlines in business and other than way too many flight delays, life is good.

TJ likes his job and I like mine and so we will just have to see what happens, but for the time being (or at least until the end of the school year) this is life for us. In the meantime, we are taking advantage of the traveling and will be making our second trip to Charlotte in November, a trip to NYC in October, a 7 day cruise for Thanksgiving, a trip to Philadelphia in January and something fun and exotic for our anniversary hopefully over spring break.

Life in Orlando is still all that I remember and I find myself smiling for no reason just driving home from work so that is a good thing. Now if I could find a way to get my husband here permanently we would be getting somewhere but this is the next best thing.

Hoping to be a more regular blogger...
She said

Summer of the Socialite

I feel like all my good blog material comes at the most inopportune times. I am spending a momentous amount of time at the gym..ask me if I have lost a pound (no, really don't) because apparently in this "Summer of the Socialite" I am eating like there may not be a next meal. I guess at least with the gym I can eat whatever I want and maintain so I shouldn't complain. I go every weekday and I can't believe how much I love the classes. I could get used to this life. Hanging out with my dad in the morning, gym in the late morning, come home and eat lunch, look for some jobs, watch something wonderful (and terrible at the same time) on the dvr, meet up with someone for dinner or drinks and then go to bed and do it all over again. Of course summer can't last forever....


In other news, I have discovered I have a serious problem with letting people get under my skin. I think T and I both have this problem. Even the littlest things can really drive me batty. There are very few days at Zumba (the most fun dance class!) that I don't find myself annoyed with another participant. It is super crowded so generally someone is always in your space, doesn't wear enough deodorant or just does something annoying. Yesterday it was just because someone looked like someone that I don't like that I was annoyed by her. That is scary. It really isn't good and I am at least aware of it so I am trying to get over it but my mind can be very powerful sometimes.

The job hunt is really not progressing as planned. I am getting nervous about the time clock ticking and seeing a one way ticket to substitute teaching (or Boston) looming. The master plan is just one year of teaching ... just one school year here and then I will be open to moving to Boston for a short time if necessary. All of my plans require me saving some money this year, and so far that isn't happening. I know that I just need to let things happen and fall where they may.

Off to Boston this weekend and then Charlotte next weekend to see the Ferreira's. Looking forward to some fun weekends and hopeful that in a few weeks I might be preparing for the school year.

Off to bed...to prepare for another day in the life,
She said

PS Still wondering when my husband plans to post again.

Do you remember the time?

A little off topic tonight, but I just had to talk about it. I see everyone posting about Michael Jackson on their facebook pages and last night I thought it was a little much. I was thinking how it is not like we ever knew him and even though his death was shocking, he wasn't someone in our lives. I didn't really think much of it until this morning.

I went to Zumba this morning and the instructor was playing "Don't stop til you get enough" and I felt really sad. I started thinking about all the memories I have that involve MJ's music. The biggest one being my red leather (pleather) vest with the zippers ala MJ's "beat it" video. I couldn't believe I was getting sad but all of these memories of dance routines, skating parties, sitting around a record player and it really was sad. John Mayer twittered last night that "we mourned the loss not only of a great artist but of our childhood selves sitting around a record player listening to Thriller" and it really hit me. It does feel a little bit like losing your childhood. Maybe I am sounding crazy and maybe last night I would have read someone like me writing this and thought they were being overdramatic, but this is how I feel today. No one has thought much of MJ in recent years, but I do thank him for some music that played a big part in my childhood. (my apologies to naysayers like me who think that it is silly to be talking about the king of pop like he went to my elementary school).


Goodbye roller skates and zippered pleather vests...
She said

Where have you been???

So all has been quiet over the past six weeks since our last entries, a few minor highlights include: moving cross country, taking a new job, living part time with my parents. Just stuff your typical 30 something is doing on a weekly basis.

As you all know, we've been planning on moving back to Orlando once the opportunity came up. We figured this was as good a time as any so we pulled the trigger. Two days before the moving truck showed up we had a slight change of plans. I was now going to MA for work and D was going to stick to the plan and go to FL. A move that was 3 years in the making took a detour all with 1 phone call and a fluke trip home to drop off our cats. Now we are "that couple" that our friends talk about.

I'm working in Bos, residing part time at home and spending my weekends in FL. D has become a fixture at the gym with twice a days workouts. Then she goes home and gives the DVR a workout. It's safe to say she has settled into a routine. Have no fear, she is still hanging out with the Millionaire Housewives plus 8 of reality TV.

I drove a truck cross country with our friend Steve who I almost got deported after a run in with boarder patrol in TX. The drive was fun but next time I'll do it in a car not a Budget truck that I need a class A license for. The other big event was finally getting rid of the full size bed that I have been sleeping once since age 6 and has been in the family for 40 years. I finally broke down.

A really new chapter

Well I believe I have been the worst blogger and I guess I should have known that moving wasn't the best time for us to start one. It seemed like a good idea at the time. Anyway, a lot has changed since our last post. I graduated, we moved to Florida, T quit his job, T accepted new job in BOSTON and we began what I like to call a "commuting" situation. I am not really comfortable with the term "long distance" when referring to my marriage. The reality of the situation was that it didn't really seem logical for us to be in a situation where we were both not working and uninsured. So since it was an incredible opportunity and he could live at home in the meantime it just made the most sense. We are just taking it day by day and we will see how it goes.

We are just about at the one month mark of our new situation and so far it isn't so bad. I have been there a few weeks and now he will be here the next few. We have been having a great time on the weekends and life is good. Sunday nights are pretty hard but the weekdays have really been flying by.

My daily routine involves breakfast with my dad, taking a dance class and a yoga class at the gym every morning at the gym (not with my dad), looking for jobs in the afternoon and watching entirely too much reality tv. I may be losing brain cells every day. Unfortunately, the job search hasn't been all that fruitful but I am trying to remain optimistic.

So far I am really enjoying this stay at home mom without kids thing, but something tells me my days will be numbered once the school year arrives. My dad brought me a home an application from Bath and Body Works but I am hopeful that I won't have to return to retail, at least not yet.

I am not sure if "he said" is going to have much to say on this one, but he told me it was my turn and so that is why HE hasn't written in so long.

Back to the mindless tv...

She said

It's Chilly in Here.

First things first, the AC has been running all day and won't stop until we walk out the door for good in 11 days. The day time high in AZ is now over 100 and the days of sleeping with the windows open smelling the dairy air are over. Job or no job I am consciously aware of the electrical usage that we are consuming. It's a controllable cost that we can benefit from directly. Not to mention, ask D when the last time she paid a utility bill was.

Secondly, you can only put so many sodas and bags of chips in your gym bag before you become "that guy". Plus I couldn't put unpacked cookies in my gym bag. That wouldn't have been a pretty scene. So I ate the cookies and saved the chips and sodas. We can always go back and test drive a car and then we can get more free snacks.

Finally, I only get credit for packing when it's with D. The moving of furniture and the boxes that are packed when she isn't home don't count. Those boxes either magically appeared in the living room or maybe she's adding them to her total. Not to brag but I did reserve the truck today through Budget. That means I've secured the car carrier and the moving truck, that has to be good for at least two boxes. I want to give a special thanks to AMEX for furnishing me with a credit card. Visa we're still waiting.

It's after peak hours so I can now go turn on the AC.

He Said

My husband spent $650 at Acura and all I got was a bag of fritos

First, I have to say I am so glad that T got his money worth in cookies at Acura, especially since all he brought me was a lousy bag of fritos. As for the credit card, I specifically told him not to give Paris' sister the Visa card because it was for sure going to be denied since, HELLO credit card fraud, they shut the account! But he gave it to her anyway, so he could hear her say you are denied I guess.

Today I officially watched the last episode of "the real housewives" so that dream is over. In other exciting news, I received an email tonight from the registrar's office saying that my graduation is "pending" since according to them I didn't student teach. Oh, so basically those 12 weeks I lived in the first grade classroom were merely a figment of my imagination. To further complicate matters, ASU has basically laid off every contact we had in the education department due to "budget cuts" so I just sent an email to the head of the department basically saying, ummm...pending graduation, excuse me?

I thought we were finally going to get some packing done tonight and then it turns out we can only do that at halftime of the Celtics game. So for those of you scoring at home we only have three days in AZ before we have guests and I graduate (well maybe) so we really need to get moving. It's amazing how motivated I am to pack when the tv with the dvr is being occupied by the Celtics.

It is 103 degrees and my husband won't turn on the air conditioner because we are unemployed, I will save that story for another day.

Off to re-apply my deodorant,
She said

No credit. No problem

There is no better time to not have a credit card than when you are getting ready to move cross country. Yesterday morning as I was at Acura dropping my car off for an oil change I got a call from Visa alerting me there has been suspicious activity on my card. I immediately called D to see what she had been buying and it turns out it wasn't her. Visa cancels my card and is in the process of sending me a new card. No big deal, right? Also yesterday I was scheduling the auto transporter to move our cars from AZ to FL. It's all well and good until she asks for the credit card number for the deposit. I told Nicky Hilton I would call her back today with the cc # because I had another one at home. Paris' sister isn't helping us move our cars, it turns out the girl's name is Nicole and she works for Hilton Auto transport. So we call her Nicky Hilton.

Nicky Hilton called this morning looking for the credit card info to process the transaction and I decided to give her the number to the Visa card that had been turned off. So right out of the shoot I look like a dead beat trying to pull one over on the hotel heiress. Then I go to the secret stash with the other credit cards are that I don't carry on my person. It turns out those have expired. I have to call Nicky back after I call American Express asking for a new card. AMEX will be sending it overnight which I kind of think Visa should have done.

You know you're getting more than your scheduled $29.99 oil change when you go home in the dealer loner car and your service advisor tells you to bring it back tomorrow when you get a chance. I think I got car jacked. I went in for the scheduled oil change and $650 later I ended up with two new tires along with a fancy wheel alignment. Now only if I had a working credit card I would have spent enough money to get a free airline ticket to lessen the blow. Instead I had to use my debit card and watch the money walk out of my account with a single swipe of the card. As I'm making small talk with the advisor she's telling me all the hours she's been working. I asked her if she gets paid salary or hourly. She tells me she's on commission. Thanks for the two new tires!!! I did make sure I went back and loaded up on the complimentary cookies, soda and coffee to make myself feel better.

He Said

When the cat's away...

Well the house is quiet since T is off to the gym. (The gym he is paying for until June only because he waited three weeks to go and cancel his membership). I mention this only because if it was me he would have been on my case until I did it and I would never hear the end of it. At least he is using it this week.

The pigeons are back and they have no desire to leave. T thinks that he can scare them off by clapping his hands really loud outside the window. Doesn't work. He will also go out there when he is really mad and start throwing rocks at the roof. I honestly think they do it to mock him because they could care less. The only people who do care are the neighbors who are outside when he does his obnoxious clapping thing (and me).

I think it is interesting that I get criticized for my tv time, but he can spend hours on the computer and that is appropriate. We all have our vices I suppose. I was able to sneak in a quick show this morning before the tyrant returned.

Since I am finished with the presentation, T told me I had to pack at least one box today. I told him I would do two at least and am happy to report I have already done three. I am an overachiever, what can I say.

As for the phone calls, I just can't deal with that. I am not sure why it is but I hate calling people like movers, phone companies, etc. I just don't like to do it. I love talking on the phone, maybe I just don't like to talk to strangers. As soon as I find a friend at the phone company or Pizza Hut, I will be all over the phone calls. Until that time, T is the man in charge of these things. I did call Directv and that ended very badly because the woman on the phone tried to convince me to "freeze" my account instead of canceling. I asked her at least three times what would be the benefit of freezing and she couldn't give me an answer. So I went upstairs and handed the phone to T. That was the end of my phone call duty.

We are having lunch with friends, but I may be able to sneak an episode of the Hills in before the pigeon police returns.

Until next time,
She said

The Parent Trap

This morning I went to the gym and brought my car in for an oil change. I'm trying to take advantage of the gym membership that I will be paying for through June as well as take care of things I've been too busy to do such as getting my oil changed. I got home around noon from these activities as well as confirming the car carrier and going by Budget to do some research on the truck rental. So far I'm getting a lot accomplished and it's only Monday. I guess it helps that I was up at 5:30 because 20 pigeons decided to take up residence on my roof and then a news helicopter was outside our window for the next 30 minutes taking pictures of a mulch fire from yesterday. So I get home and I find D back in front of the TV watching a marathon of stupid shows. She sets the series to record and then watches them all in one day while trying to write her paper. I always wondered how those wanna be reality shows stayed on TV and now I have a much better understanding. I bet D could watch TV for 20 hours a day. Then I get yelled at when I ask how the paper is going.

After I hear about the paper that isn't quite done because Millionaire Reality Housewives is going into it's eleventh straight hour I head upstairs to get on the computer and look for jobs. Not 30 seconds later D is yelling upstairs asking what I'm typing on the computer or who I was talking to on the phone. I almost feel like I'm a teenager and I have to sneak computer and TV time just so I don't have any interruptions. Then it's time to review the list. Keep in mind the list is a living document and will never be complete. We started drafting the list last weekend and it has transformed itself five times over since. D is one of the most social people I know that's why I can't figure out why she is scared to call people & companies on the phone. Anytime we order take out I have to call, even 411 is off limits. That means I have a list of companies I have to call to coordinate move related activities.

Besides scheduling car movers, furniture movers and calling the insurance company I spent the rest of the day being productive looking for jobs online. Since D is out of the house for a few hours I finally get a little quality TV time with the Celtics & Jack Bauer.

He Said

Bravo TV, I can't quit you

Finished! I am finished my presentation, with a little help from my new favorite tv show "the millionaire matchmaker". I really can't quit you, Bravo. T has been on my back like an overbearing parent, asking me how it is going with the presentation. It takes time to create a masterpiece, you know. For now, I have been stimulating my creative juices with mindless reality tv.

Tonight, I am off to dinner with an old work friend. The next two weeks I have a full social calendar (ala "the real housewives") although instead of Le Cirque or some fabulous restaurant at the Hamptons, I will be eating at very exclusive establishments like Oregano's and Native New Yorker, and having drinks at 4 Peaks.

We made some moving progress today. Confirmed the car transporter and seem to be in the final stages with the truck rental. Packing is another story. I would say we are about 50% finished right now, which considering we still have 11 days I would say we are doing pretty good. Unfortunately, our main credit card is out of commission since there is fraudlent activity that was reported today. T called me to check on my usage and I made it clear that "No, I did not spend any time on online gaming sites this weekend." That I can confirm for sure. So now we have to wait 4 days for a new card. Great timing.

Only 16 days and I will be in Orlando. I can't believe it. And yes, I have drank the Disney kool aid, and I guess you could say I was in the kitchen making it with Mickey, but what is so wrong with that?

Back to the "Housewives",
She said.

Return to the Holyland

I left Orlando, FL in December of 2000 after a year of fun in the sun post college. I had a great time, met some great friends (and a future wife) and essentially extended college by eleven more months. Then it was time to return home to get a "real" job and start the next chapter of my life. Little did I know I would marry a girl that was obsessed with Orlando. Not only was she drinking the Disney Kool-Aid she was in the back room helping Mickey make it. After I asked D to marry me she moved to Boston where we spent most of our engagement. I always knew at some point we would end up in O-Town but it was just a matter of when. As time went on, my job took us to Phoenix, AZ where we set up shop for three years and started our lives together as a married couple.

After three years in the Valley of the Sun we are about to embark on the ultimate quest of returning D to her sacred place in central Florida. This is where everything in the world is right 365 days out of the year. I'm looking forward to it as well since this means D will never have another thing to complain about again.

As we get ready for this next step I have left my job of six plus years in the world of commercial real estate to start fresh in the land of the mouse. In the coming days I'll finish up packing the house and will load a U-Haul to drive cross country. Once I get there I have to find a job, a place to live and everything else. Stay tuned.

He Said.

A move 4 years in the making...

I say four years in the making, but it's more like nine years in the making since that is the last time both T and I lived in Orlando. It feels like this is something I have waited and waited for and it is finally here. I never would have imagined when we moved back there that we would both be unemployed and moving in with my parents, but hey we are getting back there. Right now we are less than 17 days away from the move, but I mostly find myself wanting to spend a lot of quality time on the couch watching "The Real Housewives of New York City" (god bless the dvr). I know that there is much to do and I just need to find the motivation.

In the meantime, I am also finishing my last class for my master's degree. This should be priority number one since I have a presentation to give that is basically the culmination of my entire program and well, that presentation is in 2 days. But alas, it seems the real housewives are all I can handle right now.

This weekend we are heading to Boston to deliver our kitties to "Kitty Summer Camp" (aka T's parents' house) because although my parents are okay with their adult daughter and her husband moving in they did draw the line at the feline family members. So until we are settled somewhere of our own in Orlando (which will first require proper employment) we will be sans cats. Then it is back to the Valley of the Sun to wrap up our move, spend some time with President Obama and become a person who can now check "master's degree" on that box that says "highest degree earned". Who would have ever thought that the girl who took 6 years to get her bachelor's degree could earn a master's in 10 months?

Until next time,
She said